Month: April 2013

I was bad this weekend. I cheated BIG TIME on my diet and deserve a big ol’ spanking. I know that it is OK to treat yourself from time to time but I more than treated myself and felt absolutely disgusting by Sunday afternoon. Just goes to show that in-the-moment “wants” may not be worth it at the end of the day.

My recommended daily calorie intake is 1,200. Boy did I surpass that. I went out of town for the weekend and because I was staying in a hotel, I ate out for every meal. In addition to eating out, there was an array of wine and cocktails. And you know I enjoy my wine.

On Friday night before my misbehavior ensued, I squeezed in a quick workout substitute for my regular routine. The gym at the hotel was smaller than my freshman year dorm room and was extremely limited, but I made do with what was available. I did a quick warm up on the elliptical, deadlifts maxing at 60lbs (with dumbbells rather than my regular bar), and weighted lunges. Better than nothing, I guess.

I have learned just how easy it is to think that you’re eating healthy by choosing the green item on the menu, only to find that oftentimes… you’re doing the exact opposite! We went to PF Chang’s on Saturday for lunch and I ordered the Thai Beef and Noodle Salad. I knew that it would likely be a little high in calories, especially due to the toppings and the dressing (I usually get the dressing on the side and use very little of it but forgot to ask this time), but didn’t realize how bad it actually would be.

I had eaten about half of the bowl before I thought to check and see what the calorie count was on the MyFitnessPal app. It was enough to make me full then and there. One of these salads totals to 870 calories… GROSS. More than 2/3 of my daily “allowance” in one meal. I don’t use this app religiously – it’s mostly so that I can have a general idea of what I am consuming. I told myself I wouldn’t be a calorie counter. But, I am very happy that I checked before scarfing that whole bowl down.

Those of you who have been following my blog know that I am a sucker for the bad stuff. The rest of the weekend included nachos, wings and burgers. I had a regular salad and a grilled chicken caesar wrap at other points but those unfortunately did not cancel out the aforementioned high calorie meals and appetizers.

When I got home on Sunday afternoon I was NOT in the mood to exercise. I felt so full, exhausted and just plain yucky from the weekend that I just wanted to veg out on the couch and watch Netflix. But I figured… what is an hour of my time? If I can find the time to watch TV for an hour then I sure as hell can kick my ass into gear and do SOMETHING that gets me on my feet and moving.

This weekend was the first Saturday I had skipped in two months and I would have felt so terrible if I went two days in a row without exercising. SO, with my future 5k in mind, I set out for a run. Well, it was more of a run/brisk walk but I think I did alright for my first time out for the season.

Using my MapMyRun app, I mapped out a route that is just a little further than a 5k. I think I will use it to train for ColorMeRad because it has a good flat:hilly ratio. I went 3.47 miles in 44:19 at a 12:45 pace, burning 511 calories. I reached 3.1 miles (5k) in 40:26. Now, I know that the time doesn’t sound too impressive, but I am not exactly in the best running shape… yet. I imagine that my running mile is probably between 10-11 minutes. Not too terrible for someone who is just getting back into the swing of things! After my run I did 4 sets of 12 push-ups, alternating between diamond and regular.

All in all, I will definitely be paying for my slip-ups this week! I plan to kick it to the next level at the gym. Wish me luck!

As of yesterday, I am 2 months in to my new routine (9 weeks as of this weekend)! My weigh-in this morning shows that I have lost 13.3lbs! Woohoo!

I am definitely seeing some progress here and there. I have lost a decent amount of weight in my chest, my arms are less flabby and my pants are starting to feel loose. The other day I wore a pair of pants to work that used to be tight, and I spent half my time hiking them up!

Below is a side-by-side (or in this case bottom-to-top) comparison of my arm. The top picture was from April 5th and the bottom picture is from just a couple of days ago. I see slight differences but can’t tell if it’s good progress or bad! To me it sort of seems like there is less muscle, but it could just be that it is just less fat surrounding the muscle.

Thursday’s workout was deliciously difficult. I am definitely feeling it today and my butt and thighs are STILL unhappy with me from Tuesday’s ass-whoopin’. Love it.

** I alternated between Chest Press and Close-Grip Chest Press and counted that as one set. Apparently this is called Super Setting. (Learning new things every day!)

Like I said in my last post, I signed up for my first 5k race which is taking place in late July! So, of course I had to switch things up and hit the treadmill last night. I normally end my workouts on the bike — occasionally on the elliptical. I was happy to find that I was comfortable running for the duration of my cool-down, and had I had the time, could probably have gone longer. I think that now that I have something to look forward to… I will need to try and mix in a run a few times a week.

Don’t you hate when you are on a health kick but you have one of those days where you would like nothing more than to dive head first into a pool filled with saucy buffalo wings, greasy pizza and maybe even some cheesy nachos? Yea, me too.

I would kill for a plate of wings for dinner tonight but I know that tomorrow’s Katie will be kicking herself. I know that it’s OK to spoil yourself now and then but I promised myself that I would save the bad calories for the weekend.

SO, I headed to Pinterest (obviously), and found a cheater’s “buffalo wing” recipe. The kicker? The chicken part is actually cauliflower. Now, I know this probably doesn’t sound very appetizing to the saucy fried chicken lover. Trust me, I am one of them and would be lying if I said I am not a tad weary to try this mysterious recipe and taint my love for the buffalo-y goodness of real wings. But I am picturing my beach bod and am crossing all fingers and toes that this may actually be halfway decent.

Amen to that! There is so much truth in this. Exercise really is the best therapy.

I have had some not so great days at work over the past week, and let me tell you… as soon as I started working out at the end of the day, I felt a million times better.

The moment I simply ARRIVE at the gym, my mood does a complete 180. It’s weird how that works. By the time I make it through the locker room and down the stairs into the gym, I am on cloud nine – a kid in a candy shop, anxious to try everything. Between doing something good for yourself and knowing that you’re going to be sore as hell in the morning if all goes as planned (yes, I look forward to the pain), I am happy as a clam. So imagine how good my mood is after I have a killer workout and am running back to my locker drenched in sweat, salivating for my post-workout protein shake that I had been day-dreaming about. Heeeeaaaven.

So, to those of you who are stressed out, anxious, unhappy, or simply in need of a pick-me-up… I suggest you treat yourself to a good workout. You’d be surprised what it can do for the body AND mind.

I am happy to say that everywhere from my neck down feels like it has been annihilated by a 5 million ton train. Normal things like changing my clothes, using the restroom and simply walking are NOT coming easy to me today. I am SORE. Which I like because it means I had a kick-ass weekend!

On my lifting days, I focused on increasing the weight, thus resulting in fewer reps per set. I have been told to do this for quite some time now and it really does make a difference.

Friday

I finally went back to my normal routine. I was off for about two weeks because of a weird pain that I was feeling in my knee and was substituting the heavy leg days with long bike rides.

Yesterday my trainer and I went on a long brisk walk in a park by my house. According to MapMyRun we did a total of 5.89 miles, burning 676 calories! Sunday is typically my off day during the week so this was a bonus. I am so looking forward to spring making an extended appearance so I can enjoy the warm weather like we did yesterday!

Overall I feel like I had a really great weekend of exercise! I’m hoping I can do just as well this week and coming weekend.

I forgot to write last week that I beat my previous bike challenge record!

Bike Challenge: 10 miles in 40 minutes (2.50 miles every 10 minutes)

Achieved: 11.13 miles in 40 minutes on Monday, 4/15.

Last time I did this challenge ride was a little less than a week before, 4/9. I beat the goal, ending my ride at 10.88 miles.

This time I was able to get a quarter of a mile further than I did before. I think that the plan is to do a long ride every week, so hopefully the next time I do it I will be able to make it to 11.38 miles in 40 minutes to be consistent!